Larry Zhang says many Chinese discover sensitive cultural differences while living overseas.

"If you can casually stop and chat with your neighbors, that's really important. All over the States, Chinese sometimes just choose to stay together and maintain their old lifestyles."

Xiaobei also believes that even those overseas Chinese who speak English fluently often struggle to truly blend into the local culture.

A graduate of Beijing Foreign Studies University, Xiaobei speaks excellent English and had many friends in the U.S. But he says he never abandoned his old beliefs and habits.

"If I had a choice, I would definitely choose Chinese food over anything else. I think there is the notion of what is home to us. Really deep down inside I consider China to be my home, the place where I am most comfortable. It's where my parents are, it's where I want my children to grow up, it's where a lot of my long-term friends are."

Most Chinese overseas still prefer Chinese food, still like to hang out with friends in karaoke bars and, of course, watching the annual Spring Festival gala on New Year Eve also became a sure-fire way to make them feel closer to home.

Li Li graduated from the University of Melbourne, then worked overseas for three years before deciding to come back. She worried about whether she'd ever really fit into her foreign surroundings but there was another, perhaps very Chinese, reason for her decision - she feared being left "on the shelf" at the tender age of 24.

Nor is this an exclusively female angst. Economics graduate Chen Yu was anxious not to remain a bachelor for too long. He is now in Beijing helping Chinese companies to go public and is dating a girl from his hometown.

There are currently more than 1.1m Chinese studying abroad, a staggering increase of 25.8 per cent every year for the last three decades. But just under two thirds of those who've gone abroad have since returned to China, a reversal that has rapidly gained momentum in the last two years.

Chinese returning home is not altogether a one-way flow, however.

Despite all the talk of widespread recessions in the Western world, more and more successful Chinese – businessmen, high-end managers and other established middle-aged people - are still heading overseas. The State Council's Overseas Chinese Affairs Office says more than 45 million Chinese are now abroad, making this country the largest supplier of immigrants worldwide.

Xiaobei says while everyone is free to pursue their own path, he urges those considering leaving these shores to think twice before giving up everything they've worked so hard to achieve here. 

"For example there is a risk that you won't be able to blend in and you might not find the kind of work you want. And even if you do find work you love, you might well be working with people you don't identify with. When you're just starting out in your career and even if you're still in school I suppose you've got nothing to lose. You can just have a nice break. But if you're already advanced in your career, moving to different country simply because you think you might have even better prospects somewhere else may well not be a well-informed decision, at the very least!"

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